


Wither

by eldergardenshipping (dozydin_keyfree)



Series: Interpol’s Fairy tales [1]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Domestic Fluff, Don’t copy to another site, Fairy Tale Elements, Fairy Tale Logic, Fairy Tale Style, Fake Gardening, Flowers Have Emotions, Fluff, From a Flower to a Human, Gardenia Care, Gardenia!Nanu, Hanahaki Disease, Multi, Mute!Nanu, Other, Rated Mature for future cursing and shitty humor, also hanahaki disease
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-05
Updated: 2019-09-05
Packaged: 2020-10-10 10:51:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,176
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20526812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dozydin_keyfree/pseuds/eldergardenshipping
Summary: Hala and David have been married for years and built a family in Alola. While their kids are traveling Alola’s islands, they decide to picnic on a meadowy hill and find a lonely sick gardenia bud still alive after its bush is already dead. They take it home and nurse it back to health. The gardenia falls in love with these two, despite it’s best efforts not to. Things seem to crash around them when Hala becomes Kahuna and the gardenia worries that the two it loves most may fall apart. When the gardenia prays to the Tapu, they grant it a wish, but at what cost?





	Wither

Two men strolled hand in hand through a meadow. One held a picnic basket. He had short onyx hair, beautiful earthy dravite eyes, a vibrant navy and lavender bow-collar polo, smoky slacks and a sun-hat laced with midnight blue Azalea’s to protect his handsome face. The other carried a blanket. He donned a sunrise haori, a lemon-chiffon tank-top with a simple gold hibiscus flower pattern and ivory shorts, his jade hair pulled into a high ponytail by a pearl scrunchy and amber eyes glistening with joy in the morning light. 

They radiated happiness.

Happiness and love.

They climbed a small hill, looking for a spot to settle for breakfast. The man in blue excitedly pointed to an open area overlooking the meadow and the ocean past it, a couple of trees shading the area. 

“This is a nice spot, yes?”

“Yes, it is. Do you wish to picnic here, Firefly?”

The smile his partner gave him was more than enough confirmation. The blanket was rolled out and flattened for the two to park themselves. Pillows were pulled from seemingly nowhere to add comfort and they both settled, pulling out the food they packed so they could eat. 

* * *

As they packed up, the man in blue found a lonely gardenia bud, cold and wilting. It was the lone survivor of a widely sick bush, other bloomed gardenia and buds littering the surrounding area, dry and withering into compost. 

He called for his husband, “Hala?..”

Hala looked up from rolling the blanket, standing and shuffling over to see what his husband needed. When his eyes set on the problem, he knelt down and hummed.

“Ah.. A sad sight indeed..”

“What.. happened?”

“Gardenia are very fragile flowers, David. They are easily overcome by sickness or disease and have a nasty habit of dropping their buds at even the slightest change in environment. Even stress can cause a young gardenia to wither to an early death. This bush is a prime example of what happens when a gardenia bush falls ill.”

When Hala looked David’s direction, his brow furrowed. There was not just disappointment, but sympathy and desire to help glistening in his eyes. Looking back at the dying bush, he noticed the lone bud and reached to move the other branches out of the way to check if it could be saved. 

“But look here,” Hala grinned gently, “One single bud is still standing, even if barely, possibly holding out for a miracle.”

David smiled and helped Hala pull away the dead branches, then looked to him pleadingly. Hala smiled warmly, knowing full well what he was asking him wordlessly.

“If you get me a knife from our basket, clean it off and fill a water bottle with fresh water, I’ll show you how we can save this gardenia.”

In a moment, David vanished and reappeared with a clean knife, handing it to Hala and then disappearing again with an empty water bottle. While he gather fresh water, Hala pruned the sickly bud of its diseased leaves before cutting it off from the wilted bush entirely. When David came back, Hala set the little bud in the bottle. 

“We will have to stop at the thrifty mart on our way home. There are things it will need if it is to recover and bloom in full. Would you like to carry it?”

David nodded, holding the bud close to his chest while Hala grabbed their things and followed his husband throughout the whole way. 

* * *

David set the gardenia on the counter, flinching when the poor things bud swung sadly from side to side at the slightest movement. 

It was an old fable, a dying belief, that plants could feel emotions. Feel joy, fear, love or even sadness. Experienced gardeners who usually have plants lacing the very foundation of their homes(though not always) would tell you that they’re not just fairytales. If plants could feel stress, then what would stop them from feeling joy when you call them beautiful? What keeps them from being sad when the flower it grew next to loses a petal, knowing that flowers time is coming to an end?

If their entire bush is sick. If all the other flowers and buds fall and die… who is to say that lone, barely surviving little gardenia bud is not depressed and merely patiently awaiting it’s assumed predetermined fate?

Caring for plants is far more than following instructions. A plants emotions can drastically change how they grow and heal. Treat them well and a flower will bloom beautifully for you; a sign that it loves you just as you have loved it.

This weakened gardenia bud didn’t know why these two strange men cut it from its bush and gave it water. It didn’t know why one held it so closely to his chest, letting it listen to his heart beat while they walked. Why it was being rubbed with neem oil and set in a sunny area.

Why did they care whether it lived or withered away and died?

It had no answer. 

All it knew was that it was hurting. It didn’t feel well. It was sick and like the other gardenia, it patiently awaited its death.

“What a pretty little bud. I’m sure it will bloom into a wonderful gardenia flower when it is fully recovered and ready.”

Hala smiled at the plant, even going so far as to tenderly pet the compacted petals with a finger, much like one would a cat. 

This caused the bud to stiffen slightly, unused to the affection or compliments. It was confused to say the least, but felt a small twinge of happiness. When Hala removed his finger, it limply fell back down, sulking.

David flashed his husband a worried look.

“What do we now?”

“What we can do. Maintain the water freshness, rub neem oil on it when needed, prune any sick leaves from it and when it finally starts sprouting roots, we can transfer it from this water bottle to the pot we bought today. But most importantly, we must give it love.”

“What do you mean?”

“I.. believe that plants have emotions..”

Hala waited for David to snort or scoff, but neither came. He looked to his husband and upon seeing him listening, genuine curiosity flickering in his eyes, he smiled and continued.

“Plants are living creatures. As such, I believe that they have feelings, much like you, me or our pokemon. So giving it love and affection, complimenting and encouraging it is something I wish to add to it’s care.”

David rested his head against Hala’s shoulder, “I think that makes sense…”

He reached a hand out towards the bud and rubbed his index finger lightly across the top of its petals, smoothing out a crease. 

“It really is lovely. Should we name it?”

“What would we name it?”

“Hm.. What’s the Alolan name for Gardenia?”

“Nanu.”

“How about that then? It is not original, I know, but…”

Hala kissed David’s forehead, “I like it.”

David smiled, “Nanu, then?”

“Nanu it is.”


End file.
